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One of the ways Railpen manages your pension, on behalf of the Trustee , is through stewardship. That means monitoring, understanding and looking to influence the behaviour of the companies we invest in, using tools such as engagement, voting and policy advocacy.

Every year Railpen produces a detailed report, outlining its work on stewardship and how it is helping to ‘secure our members’ future’ in line with the Trustee’s mission to pay members’ pensions securely, affordably and sustainably. The latest report is available now at railpen.com/knowledge-hub/reports/stewardship-report-2023/

The 2023 Stewardship Report

The 2023 Stewardship Report explains how Railpen, on behalf of the Trustee, has been working to protect and enhance member outcomes through proactive and thoughtful stewardship over the past 12 months.

It also includes more information on Railpen’s stewardship philosophy and approach, along with case studies showing how its work has been applied. A glossary is provided on page 77 and 78, to explain any unfamiliar terms.

Activities highlighted in the report include:

1. Escalation to improve member outcomes: In 2023, Railpen removed capital/money (divested) from companies that weren’t making sufficient progress on issues that had been raised. This included divestment from 2 companies with significant governance issues, as well as from 1 company where Railpen’s Sustainable Ownership team had extensive concerns regarding workforce treatment.
   
2. Leading industry action on listings and corporate governance standards: In 2023, Railpen continued to advocate for robust corporate governance standards (how a company behaves) and shareholder protections in the UK and elsewhere, both in its own right and by collaborating and partnering with others in the industry to enhance impact.
   
3. A deepening approach to ESG (environmental, social and governance) integration beyond listed equity: In 2023, Railpen further refined its approach to ESG integration across asset classes including infrastructure, both before and after making an investment.  

A member-focused report will be available soon

A shorter, member-focused, report will be published in Autumn 2023 offering a condensed version of the Stewardship Report. It will highlight key points and address the topics and issues that members of the Scheme have identified as most important to them. We will let you know via this website and social media as soon as this report is available.

In the meantime you can read more about Railpen’s approach to investing in the Investment section of the RPS website